Run by one, or run by many... Canada's &quot;future&quot;

More and more I've heard the term thrown around by people that GDFT is "taking over Canada" since they have so many stores etc.

Do you think it's a good thing or a bad thing? I've seen mixed views from that GDFT Vancouver thread... cause it did seem like GDFT was venturing into what you could call chartered territories where Livestock has been around and doing their thing.

I'm originally from Edmonton, and there's a store there called Foosh that's been doing it up since 2000 *I think, but it seems like they always get the shit end of the stick in terms of releases cause all the good shit goes elsewhere. I'm not claiming Edmonton to be a sneaker hot spot, but c'mon its better then Calgary from what the Calgary heads say. But alas GDFT > everybody else in terms of first dibs on selection it seems.

Look at the US, even the big boutiques don't have as much coverage as GDFT does... is this good or bad for the Canadian scene in your opinion... or does the lowest price win your buck every time?

sorta long, sorry about that, I know everybody hates to read long ass shit on the internet ha

im a sucker for strating from scratch, which is exactly what Livestock did.Goodfoot had already had lots of fame coming into Vancouver, because of their 3 other locations, but Livestock started with nothing. They went from the ground up, and built their rep from there

Goodfoot Vancouver had it all handed to them on a silver platter. Now, im not hating on Goodfoot, i think its a VERY well run store, with great staff, but again, building from the ground up has me. So im all for Livestock

December 31, 2006 @ 12:49 AM

Inactive

i think its good more stores opening up in vancouver...means more selection...

Im not hating at all in my opinion Vancouver>>Toronto, Calgary and other citys in terms of sneakers and especially skateboarding.

Big ups too Goodfoot Vancity, nice staff and a great store, more sneakers to choose from.

But I still like Livestock over Gfoot since Livestock were the first ones to rep Vancity in the booming sneaker world.
Correct me if im wrong but Livestock is the first Canadians to do a collab with big streetwear brand Stussy.
Livestock has already design their own shoe with Madfoot.

Im just glad theres more sneaker shops coming to Vancouver, like I said before if LS doesnt have the shoe im looking for then ill go to Gfoot and vice versa.

IMO i find more of a selection to choose from.. like if livesotck dont got i am looking for, then i will go to goodfoot or run out sizes etc.. ya know what i mean.. I think i have said this in another thread, but like cyrus said "their doing their thing (goodfoot), and were doing our thing (livestock)". ITs just an upgrade to vancouvers streetwear scene which is dope.. like i said and eaglezephyr more to choose from.

i think right now is already good enough. we have EL kartel, a place with everything, livestock which carry most of the middle priced "hype" gear, Richard kidd with the high end wear, goodfoot with the kicks and subdivision with their independent brands. Is a lot easier for me to find the stuff i want and i wont have to go search around for prices.

When I'm on the East Coast, I rep Goodfoot simply because Ace is a dope dude and my city doesn't have another sneaker store touching Goodfoot. When I'm in Vancouver, my place of birth, and my hometown, I support Livestock. The crew at Livestock has been nothing but friendly with me since day one. I have no reason to give Goodfoot my business (unless, as Jolin said, they have something that Livestock doesn't have).

i can see them saying they're gonna each do their own thing but I don't really buy it just because at the end of the day they're basically catering to exactly the same market. The shit that they carry at each store just seeems to be all too similar, and the stuff being different at each store too small of a market to really make a huge impact on their sales (i.e. madfoot @ Livestock). As well, on release day I can would think each store would want to know what price they're selling equivalent shoes at.

But I do like everybody (or what seems like it) loyalty to their certain stores. Just goes to show that stores and their PR has been solid.

im a sucker for strating from scratch, which is exactly what Livestock did.
Goodfoot had already had lots of fame coming into Vancouver, because of their 3 other locations, but Livestock started with nothing. They went from the ground up, and built their rep from there

Goodfoot Vancouver had it all handed to them on a silver platter. Now, im not hating on Goodfoot, i think its a VERY well run store, with great staff, but again, building from the ground up has me. So im all for Livestock

Goodfoot has to start from scratch as well though in Toronto...it's not their fault they blew up and they were able to spread, blame the consumer.

After seeing the supposed best sneaker scene in NY and checking all the stores there, I can honestly say Goodfoot is better than every store sneaker store besides Flight Club in NY at least. If NY is the mecca for sneakers and GDFT is better, you can already tell what that means for the rest of the world.

i can see them saying they're gonna each do their own thing but I don't really buy it just because at the end of the day they're basically catering to exactly the same market. The shit that they carry at each store just seeems to be all too similar, and the stuff being different at each store too small of a market to really make a huge impact on their sales (i.e. madfoot @ Livestock). As well, on release day I can would think each store would want to know what price they're selling equivalent shoes at.

But I do like everybody (or what seems like it) loyalty to their certain stores. Just goes to show that stores and their PR has been solid.

They all have similar target audiences, sneakerheads and streetwearkids.
Pretty much hip hop meets skateboarding kinda thing.
Livestock never carried sbs till a few weeks ago, I guess LS never wanted to carry sbs is prolly they want kids to know that there is more to life than a SB.

Goodfoot has to start from scratch as well though in Toronto...it's not their fault they blew up and they were able to spread, blame the consumer.

After seeing the supposed best sneaker scene in NY and checking all the stores there, I can honestly say Goodfoot is better than every store sneaker store besides Flight Club in NY at least. If NY is the mecca for sneakers and GDFT is better, you can already tell what that means for the rest of the world.

I've never been to GDFT, nor have I been to NYC, but the one thing that GDFT seems to do better/best is that it has a balance between your regular sneaker joint + that "reseller-style/exclusive shit available in a brick and mortar store feel". You can buy recently released shit + the stuff that was hard to get in the past (but probably still is monetarily hard to get).

Gdft as whole is a great operation. When I'm back east, I usually make the trip to the Toronto store. And, I really respect what they've been able to do in the few years they've been around. It's not exactly easy to open 4 stores across the country in such a short period of time.

However, there have been some serious mis-steps with the Vancouver opening, and I think that is where much of the negativity has stemmed from.

Advertising that a bunch of SBs would be available at opening, and then not selling them, as well as a general lack of sizing in other shoes aren't exactly great ways to introduce yourself to a new audience.

You must also take into account that the Livestock crew have been able to build a really solid reputation in Vancouver, as well as a loyal following (myself included). So, Gdft also has that to overcome.

Gdft as whole is a great operation. When I'm back east, I usually make the trip to the Toronto store. And, I really respect what they've been able to do in the few years they've been around. It's not exactly easy to open 4 stores across the country in such a short period of time.

However, there have been some serious mis-steps with the Vancouver opening, and I think that is where much of the negativity has stemmed from.

Advertising that a bunch of SBs would be available at opening, and then not selling them, as well as a general lack of sizing in other shoes aren't exactly great ways to introduce yourself to a new audience.

You must also take into account that the Livestock crew have been able to build a really solid reputation in Vancouver, as well as a loyal following (myself included). So, Gdft also has that to overcome.

Opening 4 stores is not easy, I just hope livestock stays in Vancouver...same with HUF staying in SF only.

I guess a lotta ppl were dissapointed that Gfoot never sold those sbs, that they said they were going to.

January 1, 2007 @ 12:15 AM

Inactive

The more competition the better.

Livestock has had some pretty obnoxious prices (granted, they are not as bad as some spots in the east coast, but the markups are all there).. Which is all fine since hey they're just trying to make a living too.

But having GoodFoot come in will keep both stores from overcharging since it will drive their customer base to the competition.. Which basically means that they will both make efforts to keep us (the customers) happy

Can't go wrong with that

I've been to LS/BK a few times and GDFT only once, but both crews seem like good people to me. Goodfoot could have handled their opening a bit better but I doubt something like that will hurt their business for very long.

Goodfoot has to start from scratch as well though in Toronto...it's not their fault they blew up and they were able to spread, blame the consumer.

After seeing the supposed best sneaker scene in NY and checking all the stores there, I can honestly say Goodfoot is better than every store sneaker store besides Flight Club in NY at least. If NY is the mecca for sneakers and GDFT is better, you can already tell what that means for the rest of the world.

i was only referring to Gdft vancouver. they had everything given to them already

It can't possibly hurt GDFT's business, because when they do decide to unveil those SB releases, they'll be the only ones.

January 1, 2007 @ 10:01 AM

Inactive

i was only referring to Gdft vancouver. they had everything given to them already

This is a pretty ridiculous statement though. It doesnt even make any sense..

Goodfoot isn't the Walmart of shoe boutiques; it's basically what Livestock would be if it were more successful and expanded.. There's no huge conglomerate that is making everything a cakewalk for them. Everything they are doing still came from the success of their first store..

There's nothing wrong with saying you prefer Livestock, but the reason you're giving isn't a real one. Just say you're friends with the guys that run it and be done with it..

January 1, 2007 @ 10:03 AM

Inactive

It can't possibly hurt GDFT's business, because when they do decide to unveil those SB releases, they'll be the only ones.

Well, the one time I went there, a few of the guys who were camped out had gone to the store opening expecting to be able to buy De La Souls and whatnot.. and came away pretty pissed off.

That whole deal was bad advertising by GDFT, but then they never said they were releasing them on opening day either, so a lot of it is people getting ahead of themselves.. Which is a really common thing in our hobby

But then I guess they were still camping out so how mad could they have been right?

This is a pretty ridiculous statement though. It doesnt even make any sense..

Goodfoot isn't the Walmart of shoe boutiques; it's basically what Livestock would be if it were more successful and expanded.. There's no huge conglomerate that is making everything a cakewalk for them. Everything they are doing still came from the success of their first store..

There's nothing wrong with saying you prefer Livestock, but the reason you're giving isn't a real one. Just say you're friends with the guys that run it and be done with it..

it makes perfect sense
like ive said many times, Gdft Vancouver started out with 3 other chained stores, so they didnt even have work there way up. it took livestock a while to become where they are now, while it took gdft vancouver a month

I remember the first time I saw GDFT. It was on Breakfast Television, back when I was in grade 6 or 7. Said how it was near the Bata shoe museum, and Jennifer Valentine was being guided around and was looking at forces, the majority of their stock was forces when I was watching.

January 1, 2007 @ 09:01 PM

Inactive

it makes perfect sense
like ive said many times, Gdft Vancouver started out with 3 other chained stores, so they didnt even have work there way up. it took livestock a while to become where they are now, while it took gdft vancouver a month

... So you're saying if Gary decided to open up a Livestock in Richmond, you wouldnt support it because it wouldnt have to start from scratch?

im a sucker for strating from scratch, which is exactly what Livestock did.
Goodfoot had already had lots of fame coming into Vancouver, because of their 3 other locations, but Livestock started with nothing. They went from the ground up, and built their rep from there

Goodfoot Vancouver had it all handed to them on a silver platter. Now, im not hating on Goodfoot, i think its a VERY well run store, with great staff, but again, building from the ground up has me. So im all for Livestock

I heard Gerry won the lottery or something and opened up LS and BK but I'm not sure if thats true..